Question: When is hockey season for the Newcastle Stars?
Answer: Hockey season typically starts October 1 and goes to the first weekend in April with Christmas and March Break as blackout times.
Question: Does my child have to know how to skate before enrolling in U7 (Formerly Initiation)?
Answer: No hockey or skating experience is required. Our program will put kids in skill development stations for practice. All players will be broken up into groups based on skill level for their games. Games are 1/4 ice. It's a great way to get your child on the ice and experience hockey for the first time.
Question: What kind of schedule can I expect when I register my kids for house league hockey in Newcastle?
Answer: That depends on your child’s Division - see below for specific details.
Mites
Typically static ice times through the season, consisting of 1 ice time on a week night, 1 on ice time on the weekend all at Newcastle Memorial Arena.
U7 - (Formerly Initiation)
Typically static ice times through the season, on week nights with games on weekends.
U8 - (Formerly Minor Novice)
Typically 1 static ice time for practice during the week and 1 static ice time on weekend for practice/ game. Games are typically early on the weekends however this is based on ice time availability. Games will be played in the CRHL local league vs Clarington Thunder and Orono teams.
U9 - (Formerly Novice)
Typically 1 static ice time during the week and 1 static ice time on the weekend. Half ice games start in October. Newcastle teams play in the CRHL (Clarington Recreational Hockey League) local league for games. Games could be scheduled any night of the week based on ice availability.
U11, U13, U15 (Formerly Atom, PeeWee, Bantam)
Typically 1 static ice time during the week at Newcastle Memorial Arena for practice with an additional 1-2 ice times per week to accommodate games. Games are typically on the weekend however could be on a week night, and could be played in either Newcastle, Bowmanville or Orono. Game schedule varies and is dependent on the CRHL.
Question: How are house league teams created?
Answer: Each year in September - Initiation, Minor Novice, Novice, Atom, PeeWee, Bantam and Midget will hold evaluation skates, before the season starts, to get an idea of the skill level of each individual player. Some years, there are only enough players to create 1 team in a Division. When this occurs, that Division will not require an evaluation skate. After the evaluation skate, players will be divided into teams based on skill level, age and overall team balance.
Question: Do all house league teams play in playoffs?
Answer: Teams from U8 and up will play in a championship weekend playoff.
Question: There have been so many changes to half ice, full ice, tyke, minor novice -it is so confusing?? Where can I go to get more detailed information?
Answer: Take a look at our dedicated web page Initiation, Minor Novice, Novice for a summary or you can check out the following links 1.Novice & Below - Association Implementation Guide - Revised February 2019 2. https://www.omha.net/news_article/show/892328
Question: Why do I get the hockey schedule at the same time the season is starting? I'd prefer to receive it earlier, please and thank you.
Answer: Newcastle's local league consists of the CRHL which includes teams in Bowmanville, Newcastle and Orono. In Newcastle, our hockey registration ends on August 31. To create a hockey schedule, all 3 associations must be firm in their team numbers. They must also have contracts finalized with their local arenas to secure ice times for the associations. This can not be done with out knowing the number of teams that are required, which can not be confirmed until September 1. After September 1, the CRHL scheduler must collect all ice times and team numbers from all associations and create a schedule. This is based on the availability of volunteers. Recruiting volunteers for this job can be difficult some years and may resort relying on volunteers that have taken on other duties to double up in their duties to get this done. Our local NVMHA scheduler, who coordinates the Newcastle Memorial Arena static ice times for our house league teams, strives to post the schedule as soon as possible after September 1 on the website. Players are informed which team they are on after the Evaluation Skates and can look on the website to view their static times. These times are subject to change once the CRHL schedule is confirmed.